They Went in Anyway
22 x 30
mixed media
This drawing honors the eleven young women of the group known as The
Norfolk 17.
These were Black students who, in February 1959, integrated six
previously all-white public schools in Norfolk, Virginia, after months of
school closures enforced under the state’s policy of “Massive Resistance.”
In defiance of the Brown v. Board of Education ruling, Virginia chose to
deny education rather than desegregate.
The students depicted are:
Top row: Johnnie Rouse, Patricia Turner, Carol Wellington, Olivia Driver,
Lolita Portis
Middle row: Delores Johnson, LaVera Forbes, Geraldine Talley
Bottom row: Betty Jean Reed, Claudia nh Wellington, Patricia Godbolt
Out of 151 Black applicants subjected to deliberately discriminatory testing
and interviews, only seventeen were admitted. The majority were girls.
Supported by churches and the NAACP, these young women entered
schools where they faced daily threats, spitting, physical assaults, and
profound isolation. Yet they persisted, understanding that their presence
carried consequences far beyond their own lives.
Rather than depicting spectacle or confrontation, this work focuses on their
composure, dignity, and collective strength. Their courage forced the
reopening of Norfolk’s public schools and contributed to the nation’s
ongoing struggle toward educational equity. These young women were not
only students—they were agents of change, embodying the civic power of “Her Story”
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